Wales

Cuthbert beat England 'on one leg'

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 12:54

Wales wing Alex Cuthbert rubbed salt into England's wounds by saying he tore his hamstring before running in two tries that were the cornerstone of a record-breaking victory.

Last Saturday's 30-3 win in Cardiff saw Wales retain their Six Nations title and deny England a Grand Slam, with Cuthbert's two second-half tries at the Millennium Stadium the decisive scores.

But the 22-year-old Cardiff Blues flyer told the Daily Mail: "I tore my hammy after about 30 minutes - it's a grade-two tear, so I was struggling for the rest of the game."

Cuthbert's performance against England cemented his standing as a contender for a place in the British and Irish Lions squad, due to be announced late next month, for the tour of Australia.

Former Lions boss Ian McGeechan has urged current coach Warren Gatland to be certain of the fitness of his squad rather than have players recovering from injury in Australia ahead of the Test series with the Wallabies.

But Cuthbert insisted the New Zealander should have no qualms about picking him for the combined side on account of his hamstring problem.

"I should be out for four weeks," Cuthbert told the Mail.

"It's coming on quite well, so I'm hoping to be back for the last two games of the Pro12 [competition]. Obviously, I want to play again before the end of the season."

The Lions begin their tour with a match against the Barbarians in Hong Kong on June 1.